Urban Forestry

Chicago's estimated four million trees provide benefits such as clean air, privacy, and shade and windbreaks that help reduce energy costs. Openlands works hard to keep these arboreal allies vibrant and abundant in our urban environment.

Residing at the heart of our urban forestry projects are TreeKeepers, volunteers who are trained to care for the urban forest, and the Betty Swan Community Arboretum, a living laboratory in Chicago's North Lawndale neighborhood, where residents, students, and TreeKeepers learn about and practice caring for city trees.

Forest trees can live for over 100 years, but urban trees, forced to contend with pollution and limited space for growth, usually survive for only about fifteen years unless they receive special attention—approximately 1,000 trees die in Chicago every year due to neglect.

That's why, since 1991, TreeKeepers have worked throughout the city to keep its trees healthy, administering proper care and promptly recognizing and reporting harmful pests, such as the emerald ash borer (EAB), an invasive beetle from Asia that targets and kills ash trees. The EAB has killed more than 40 million ash trees in southeastern Michigan alone.

Participants in the seven-week program meet every Saturday morning for three hours of hands-on instruction in topics that include basic tree planting and care, species identification, and how to recognize diseases and pests. A low fee of $80 covers the cost of class materials. Financial assistance is available. (Click on these links to download the Spring 2010 TreeKeepers brochure, syllabus and instructor list, and registration form and view a complete listing of classes and workdays.)

Classes are taught by professionals from Bartlett Tree Experts, The Care of Trees, Chicago Bureau of Forestry, Chicago Park District, Chicago Department of Environment, and the Morton Arboretum, as well as other expert arborists. After completing the coursework, TreeKeeper trainees must pass field tests and a final exam—some institutions grant college credit for the class.

Graduates of the program are the only volunteers in Chicago permitted to plant and maintain trees on city, park, and forest preserve land. Jerome Scott, district forester for the Chicago Park District, notes, “Tree planting by these volunteers can rival any professional effort.”

TreeKeepers remain active throughout the year, planting, mulching, pruning, and providing the maintenance necessary for trees to thrive in our urban forest. For more information about TreeKeepers, please contact Jim DeHorn at 312-863-6259.

Julia Peet Tree Fund 

Trees not only provide many benefits to our city but can also be an enduring tribute to a friend or loved on. Shauna and Karl Peet, longtime supporters of Openlands, honored the birth of their daughter by establishing the Julia Peet Tree Fund, which supports planting and the maintenance of a wide variety of trees in neighborhoods throughout Chicago—many desperately lacking for open space. 

Located at 3842 W. Arthington, in Chicago's North Lawndale neighborhood, the Betty Swan Community Arboretum results from a unique partnership between Openlands and the  North Lawndale Greening Committee and will become a place for residents, students, and TreeKeepers to learn about and practice caring for urban trees. Formal opening of the site, on land owned by NeighborSpace, is scheduled for July 2009.

Openlands also participates in planning efforts with local government agencies in the city and the surrounding region to increase biodiversity and urban tree health, as well as educate the public about the benefits of trees in an urban setting. Community Greening staff and TreeKeepers volunteers are critical partners with the City of Chicago and other public and non-profit organizations in a City Trees Initiative to double the city's healthy shade tree canopy by 2040.

Openlands 25 E. Washington St., Suite 1650, Chicago, IL 60602
312-863-6250 | 312-863-6251 (FAX)
info@openlands.org

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